NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 673: Prelude to the Breakup (No Protagonist Chapter)

On Sunday, July 2009, 7, the New York Times suddenly reported an abstract news story: the Brooklyn Nets next door had done something big to sell tickets:
"In response to the difficult financial situation, the club has provided fans with a 10-match programme which includes reversible jerseys."

"The jerseys have the names of the Nets players on one side and the names of the opposing team players on the other side."

"Nets fans can get this special gift by purchasing season tickets."

Ever since Nets President and CEO Brett Yormark took the initiative to reveal relevant information in an interview with the media, he has become a laughing stock among New Yorkers.

The New York Times frequently used the word “confused” when reporting this news. In all these years in the industry, no one has ever seen a team selling double-sided jerseys, let alone two names?

Even Chris Granger, the NBA's senior vice president of team marketing and business operations, commented euphemistically during an ESPN interview this morning:
“I’ve never experienced this before, maybe this is a great innovation”

The most outrageous thing is that the Nets used a photo of Li You’s jersey in their bundled sales promotion, with a Nets jersey on the front and a Knicks jersey on the back.

After the relevant photos were updated on Facebook, the onlookers immediately laughed.

The Nets' target users are quite precise. Many of the ticket buyers are New York fans. Maybe some of them will like this new jersey?

The NBA has just added penalties for an accident a few years ago. JR Smith was involved in a serious car accident due to reckless driving and violation of relevant state laws, and was eventually suspended for 7 games.

The 09-10 season will be officially implemented, and the champion defender has lost his starting position before the new season even begins.
The Knicks officials did not react much. Recently, the Dolan family has been splitting up MSG and trying to repackage it and list it on the market. As long as it does not affect the championship, this is a small matter.

In fact, JR Smith has become much more honest since he was on the bench. The picky New York media can't find anything fun about the championship guard. Compared with other players, JR Smith looks like a model player!

The free market is gradually cooling down, and the biggest fun this week is actually that Michael Beasley entered a rehabilitation institution due to psychological problems!
What made Heat fans most nervous about this incident was that Beasley posted a photo on his Twitter page that included bags of leaves.

Maybe he was too excited, after releasing the photo of the dollar and the leaf, Michael Beasley also showed off his new tattoo, and the content of the tattoo also involved some gang information.
The talent that the Heat selected for the worst performance blew up, and the local fans were naturally angry. Up to now, no one from the team has spoken out, and Wade, who has always been active, has also remained silent. The Flash may have never seen anyone so stupid!

In the afternoon, seeing that his eldest son's financial future was in trouble, Michael Beasley Sr. had to accept an interview and speak up for his son in a radio talk show:
"Basketball has gone from fun to work, and this job has brought him nothing but pain!"

"I think the playoff losses had a huge impact on Michael. He had never lost so many games in the past. After each loss, the fans would vilify him. He took on responsibilities that did not belong to him."

"We welcomed a new family member in May, and becoming a father also brought pressure to Michael."

"He was a new dad and I think the overwhelming responsibility may have taken its toll on him psychologically. Michael wasn't smoking leaf and didn't test positive."

"."

Although Michael Beasley Sr. tried his best to speak for his eldest son and even cited the example of "Iverson", after the news was leaked, there was a lot of abuse on Twitter.

A millionaire comes to talk about psychological problems? Everyone except extreme fans thinks this is a mockery of them.

Seeing that fans were about to launch a boycott, the Heat officials and Wade had to speak out. The former said they would investigate the facts, and the latter took this opportunity to reaffirm his leadership:

"As the leader of the team, I will help Michael overcome the difficulties. It's so dangerous and tiring!"

The incident overshadowed the fact that Dirk Nowitzki's fiancée was sentenced to five years in prison for forgery and theft over a 12-year period.

The German was a little sad, but the good news was that the child was fake and maybe his fiancée was loyal.

On Monday, July 7, at the end of the month, the news published by the Boston Herald early in the morning made Celtics fans feel disappointed: Are the "Big Four" going to break up?
"General Manager Danny Ainge said he was unable to discuss a contract extension with Ray Allen due to family developments that could affect future decisions."

"Ray Allen's teenage daughter, who previously lived with her mother in South Carolina, is expected to move to New York for the upcoming school year, where she will likely focus on volleyball and basketball."

The related column article introduces Ray Allen's family situation. Compared with other black fathers who are good at running away, it is commendable that this big star takes care of his ex-wife and daughter.

But Celtics fans who read the report were angry. Moving to New York to study, doesn't that mean playing "brother basketball"?
Although the article did not mention anything about Li You arranging good relationships for his friends, Boston fans have already imagined it on their own!
In the past two years, the well-known talented player in New York is Kyrie Irving. After becoming a nationally renowned high school student, Irving and his father have thanked Li You for his help more than once.

Ray Allen has already found an excuse, and is just waiting for his contract to expire and moving out.
Garnett, who just returned to Boston from Los Angeles, shortened his recovery period. His vacation is over and he will focus on knee recovery in the next few months, which makes the media surround him every day.

Garnett, who was immersed in the training hall in the afternoon, finished his daily recovery training and took a few tough guy photos. He was in a good mood, but when he heard the questions from the sports reporter, he became a little annoyed:
"If Ray Allen chooses to leave, will you return to the Timberwolves? Rajon Rondo thinks he will be the future of the team."

ESPN reporters have been following the news about the Celtics, and now that there is a trend of breaking up, they simply added fuel to the fire by bringing out the championship guard that Garnett hates the most.

Although the staff on the side wanted Garnett to avoid the question, Hardt glared directly and gave a positive answer:

"Why would Ray leave? We haven't won a championship yet! Together we will fulfill our promise to the fans."

"I will dedicate the second half of my career to the Celtics. As for Rajon Rondo, he still has a lot to learn and he has to integrate into our locker room culture."

The local sports reporters in Boston did not believe this. Ray Allen seemed to be out of tune with several of them. They had already noticed this. Some reporters had photographed the team dinners without Ray Allen many times.

"Kevin, we want to know more about Stephen Marbury's situation. We haven't gotten any relevant news so far. Will he still play for the Celtics next season?"

"."

Thinking of the situation of his old teammate, Garnett's eyes twitched slightly. Ever since that "madness", Marbury has been in a rehabilitation center. The doctor believes that he has developed jade syndrome and is in urgent need of psychological counseling.

The Celtics officials would naturally not tell anyone about this embarrassing thing, otherwise they would definitely be laughed at by fans in New York next door, saying they lost the game so badly, they are the second generation of Allen Iverson!

"Stephen will be back. I know how hard he has worked for the championship. He is a real tough guy and injuries can't knock him down." "The team has completed many player contract extensions during the offseason. I know you don't think highly of us, but never underestimate the veterans' desire for the championship!"

"Basketball games are not simply a numbers game. In the third year of cooperation, we have completed the transformation."

Garnett is still speaking for Marbury. His old teammate used technology to win the game, but now his knee injury has made him lose his explosiveness. He believes that the Celtics should offer him a contract instead of giving up.

After hearing Harden's confident statement, many sports reporters are still not optimistic about them. Once Ray Allen runs away, the "Big Four" will most likely completely disintegrate, and the window for winning the championship has begun to close.

After finally finishing the interview, Garnett walked towards the locker room while communicating with the team staff. He didn't like Rondo's attitude and would complain from time to time:

"Don't think of making me compromise with the rookies. All the players coming out of New York have problems. These guys will destroy the existing chemistry!"

“I’ve been through this, and maybe he can fix the organizational issues, but he has to be aware of his own identity.”

"What did Pau say? Did Coach Rivers talk to him about it? Why the hell did they start asking me about the extension when we didn't do much in free agency."

"."

During the holiday, Rivers and the team's medical staff visited him, for which Garnett was grateful, but he was not very satisfied with the actions in the free market.

"You should talk to Ray about this, Kevin. Time is running out for the championship. The Knicks are about to surpass us. In the new season, more people may speak out, so you have to be prepared."

Ed Leatherett is the team's chief sports injury therapist and is currently responsible for Garnett's recovery. When talking about the problems in the new season, he subconsciously whispered a reminder to the core player.

Ed Leatherett has been with the Celtics since 87 and is well aware of the problems caused by too many famous players. Everyone can work with the media to destroy the locker room.

The championship is the pride of the Celtics, but after the Knicks kept narrowing the gap, their die-hard fans became discouraged. Coupled with the old grudges in the sports rivalry between the two cities, if they continue to lose, the only option is disintegration.

"I know. I'll talk to Ray. We were so close to winning the championship. I saw the opportunity."

Garnett returned to his seat, patted his chest, expressed his confidence and did not forget to give his own opinion. The "Championship Game" was soon over.

After returning home and having dinner, Garnett watched ESPN's PTI talk show again. This show is a source of joy for many sports fans during the off-season. It has a wide audience, and even the president is one of their audiences.

Complaining about the psychological problems of NBA millionaires became a small climax after the opening of the program. Garnett, who was watching TV, felt uncomfortable listening to it. Marbury really tried his best, and now his contract is almost gone, but he is not respected.

He wanted to make another phone call to comfort his old teammate, but the voice of host Michael Wilbon on the TV made Garnett put down his phone:
"Thanks to Twitter, thank you Lee for encouraging NBA players to join this social software. I will check the news on it every day!"

"Today's featured tweet is from championship guard Rajon Rondo. I love his candor!"

"If you can't play with your brain, then catch the ball, shoot, do your job, and I will teach you how to win the championship!"

After reading out Rondo's tweet in the afternoon, the two hosts on TV couldn't stop laughing. Although Rondo did not name anyone, everyone knew that this was a response to Garnett's interview.

"Fuck! Damn Nico!"

Garnett was furious at the rookie's arrogant attitude. The two have not spoken to each other until now. He is prejudiced against championship experience, and the influence of Sprewell on him continues to this day.

After a burst of anger, Garnett's face was full of anger. Thinking of the assistant coach's reminder, he sent a text message to Ray Allen again, asking about the contract renewal issue, but he got angry again.

"Man, I don't want to discuss work during family time."

"."

After reading the text messages on the phone, Garnett edited them several times, and finally threw the phone on the sofa in anger. This is why he and Pierce don't like Ray Allen. The two sides have different ideas.

Garnett felt sad when he thought about the Celtics' disintegration. He gave up the highest honor, the "One Man, One City Award", but ended up failing to make it to the finals?
The cover of the latest issue of Sports Illustrated features Lee Woo again, but there aren't many basketball elements. Lee Woo and Florentino Perez, who is starting his second term at Real Madrid, each take up half of the cover.

Manchester United sued Real Madrid. Li You expressed his support for the club while allowing Cristiano Ronaldo's transfer, allowing the Portuguese genius to fulfill his dream of becoming a Real Madrid player.

The world's sports media followed suit. After Ronaldo's transfer, Li You recommended another Brazilian genius player, Neymar, which made the audience look forward to it. This young player will land in the Premier League after he becomes an adult.

Garnett flipped through the magazine again, feeling even more frustrated. Just like what Lynch Hunter said, basketball is Li You's championship game.
Thinking that Li You might be sitting in front of the TV watching his joke, Garnett was so angry that he stopped texting Ray Allen and called his loyal brother Kendrick Perkins:
"Perk, I want to talk about the new season sometime soon. Damn it, we can't keep losing."

On the other end of the phone, Perkins, who was also watching the show, also looked unhappy. The Lakers and Celtics took turns to be clowns. When they heard the boss' words, they immediately responded in a rough voice:

"Yee! I know what to do, Bro, I'm ready."

Garnett, who was fuming in his own home, finally found a confidant. Tough guys also need help. As long as he wins once, his reputation will be completely reversed. 1 greater than 11 is not a dream!
On Thursday, July 7, team legend Charles Oakley joined the Knicks coaching staff, and the New York media was the first to report the news.

In the morning at the Tarrytown Training Center, Oakley and several assistant coaches were interviewed together. After retiring, his beard has turned mostly white, but his body has not gained weight completely. The championship forward still looks very tough.

The atmosphere was very joyful. Charles Oakley, grinning from ear to ear, changed into a training suit and talked about his return. He said bluntly:
“I hope to share my championship experience with young people!”

"Data analysis is great, but data alone cannot achieve greatness. If we want to surpass the Celtics, we have to become tougher!"

"."

(End of this chapter)